পোলা-পাইনদের আরেকটু ভয় দেখানোর জন্য দিলাম .... ;) Gonzalo HIGUAIN FORWARD 36International Caps 20International Goals 26years old 184cm FIRST INTERNATIONAL Argentina - Peru 10 Oct 2009 DATE OF BIRTH 10 Dec 1987 CURRENT CLUB SSC Napoli (ITA) 28 Apr 2014 FIFA How would Gonzalo Higuains career have panned out had he accepted then France coach Raymond Domenechs invitation to feature in a friendly for Les Bleus back in 2006? There is no way of knowing, but one thing we do know for sure is that the France-born forward – who always dreamed of playing for Argentina – would have scored goals whoever he represented. Though his father, Jorge Nicolas Higuain, was a footballer, Gonzalo is far from a chip off the old block. While dad was an uncompromising defender nicknamed Pipa (The Pipe) because of his prominent nose, Pipita (Little Pipe) is a fox in the box – a natural No9 who relies on his pace and sharp instincts to always be in the right place at the right time. He can set up goals as well as finish with both feet and his head. Higuain enjoyed a meteoric rise to the top, moving to Real Madrid as a teenager, just 35 appearances and 13 goals after making his River Plate debut in 2005. Following a short teething period, his class soon came to the fore, allowing him to hold his own amid competition from the likes of Raul, Ruud van Nistelrooy, Rafael van der Vaart and Karim Benzema. He lifted six trophies in Madrid – his most prolific season came in 2009/10, when he hit the target 29 times in 40 games – and has continued to bang in the goals since joining Napoli in 2013. Having not represented Argentina at youth level, the sharpshooter had to bide his time before making the international breakthrough. Overlooked for the 2007 Copa America and that years FIFA U-20 World Cup in Canada, he finally got a call-up in 2009, though he previously turned out for the U-23 side. Diego Maradona handed him his first cap in a 2010 FIFA World CupTM qualifier against Peru and he duly got on the scoresheet. Higuain started all five games in South Africa, netting four times during Argentinas run to the quarter-finals. He has been a fixture in the team under current coach Alejandro Sabella, finishing as the countrys second top scorer on the road to Brazil 2014 with nine goals. As such, Sabella will be banking on the Napoli predator and his deadly partnership with Lionel Messi and Sergio Aguero to fire the Albiceleste to the trophy this summer.
Posted on: Sun, 08 Jun 2014 17:04:18 +0000